Another Enjoyable Evening at City Hall

It's not that often we have an entirely "classical" concert in Hong Kong. Last Saturday, we had one. Nicholas McGegan, a short, energetic English conductor specializing in baroque music (as Musical Director of the San Francisco based Philharmonia Barqoue Orchestra for 26 years) led the HKPO and an excellent bass baritone Andrew Foster-Williams at the City Hall and gave us some very rhythmic and lively music from the classical era with pieces taken mostly from operas by Rameau and Mozart and concluded with the latter's Symphony No. 36 in C minor. I understand that McGegan had done a more or less similar programme with the Adelaide Philharmonic, with Mozart's Symphony No. 40 instead of the No. 36 which we had.

Jean-Philippe Rameau's music is not often heard in Hong Kong. He's an 18th century French composer specializing in operas and was approached  in 1748 by Louis XV for staging one to celebrate the ending of the so-called Hundred Years War between Britain and France and as a result produced Naïs (name of a water nymph who according to Greek myth had a long courtship by Neptune) with an Ouverture depicting the battles between the Titans and the Gods until the goddess of peace arrived, marked by Entrée Majestueuse (Majestic Entry), followed by a Sarabande ( a Baroque dance in three beats with the second and third linked) and then a Gavotte Vive (another favourite French court dance of the period in four beats) and then another folk dance Rigaudons in two beats. In the opera, there was a contest in ancient Corinth in honour of the sea god Neptune and to mark the entry of the wrestlers into the stadium, we had Entrée des lutteurs (Entry of the Fighters), followed by another dance, the Chaconne (another dance in triple time with a ground bass accenting the second beat) to simulate the various games being played at the stadium and to celebrate the winner, we had Air de Triomphe (Air of Triumph) and then Menuet, a very gentle dance in triple time and ending with a display of fiery spirit by a Tambourins (another dance in two-time). It's a very lively piece indeed.

Next we had some songs by Handel sung for us by the bass-baritone with plenty of life and emotions, : Sibilar gli angui d'Aletto( The Hissing of Alecto's Snake/Anguish?)  from the opera Rinaldo, Siroe, Re di Persai (Siroe King of Persia): Gelido in ogni vena ( (Ice in every vein) sung by the Saracen King Argante when he arrives to call for a truce in Jerusalem during the Christian crusades and finally Nell mondo e nell abisso (The world and the abyss) from his Tamerlano, a Tartar prince. He also sang for us Mozart's aria Cosi Dunque tradisci (So you have betrayed me).. Aspri rimorsi atroici (Spirit of Fierce Remorse) and Hai gia vinta la causa (We've won the case) from Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro).

Finally, we had another piece by Mozart which needs little introduction, his Symphony No. 36 in C minor, the "Linz". Perhaps influenced by the high spirits of McGegan, the HKPO gave an excellent performance, full of life and verve. A very enjoyable concert indeed.

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